Urgent: CSRF Threat in PHPGurukul Student Record System v3.2 – CVE-2025-63955

This article details a critical Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability identified in PHPGurukul Student Record System v3.2. Specifically, the vulnerability exists within the manage-students.php component, potentially leading to significant security risks.

Overview

CVE-2025-63955 highlights a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability within the manage-students.php file of PHPGurukul Student Record System v3.2. This vulnerability allows a malicious actor to force an authenticated administrator’s browser to send forged requests to the application’s server. Successful exploitation can lead to unauthorized actions, most notably, the deletion of user accounts, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS) condition.

Technical Details

The vulnerability stems from the lack of sufficient CSRF protection mechanisms within the manage-students.php component. An attacker can craft a malicious HTML page containing a form that, when submitted by an authenticated administrator, triggers the deletion of user accounts. Because the request originates from the administrator’s authenticated session, the server processes it as a legitimate action.

Specifically, the deletion action is likely triggered by a GET or POST request containing a user identifier. Without proper CSRF tokens to validate the request’s origin, an attacker can easily construct this request and trick the administrator into executing it.

CVSS Analysis

The CVSS score for this vulnerability is currently unavailable (N/A). While the CVSS score is not yet assigned, the potential impact of unauthorized user deletion leading to DoS suggests a high severity rating is likely. We will update this article as more information becomes available.

Possible Impact

The exploitation of CVE-2025-63955 can have severe consequences:

• Unauthorized User Deletion: Attackers can delete user accounts without proper authorization.
• Denial of Service (DoS): By systematically deleting user accounts, attackers can render the system unusable, effectively denying service to legitimate users.
• Data Loss: Deletion of user accounts may result in loss of associated data, depending on the application’s data management practices.
• Reputational Damage: A successful attack can significantly damage the reputation of the organization using the vulnerable software.

Mitigation and Patch Steps

To mitigate the risk posed by CVE-2025-63955, the following steps are recommended:

1. Apply the Official Patch: The primary solution is to apply the official patch released by PHPGurukul (if available). Monitor the PHPGurukul website for updates and security advisories.
2. Implement CSRF Protection: If an official patch is unavailable, implement CSRF protection mechanisms within the manage-students.php component. This involves generating and validating CSRF tokens for all sensitive actions, such as user deletion.

   Example Implementation:

   Important note: The below code snippets are only intended as illustrative examples to guide a mitigation. They should not be implemented in any software without proper security review, testing and tailoring for a specific environment.

   Generating CSRF token

             <?php
             session_start();
             if (empty($_SESSION['csrf_token'])) {
                 $_SESSION['csrf_token'] = bin2hex(random_bytes(32));
             }
             $csrf_token = $_SESSION['csrf_token'];
             ?>
             <input type="hidden" name="csrf_token" value="<?php echo $csrf_token; ?>">
             

   Validating CSRF token

             <?php
             session_start();
             if (!isset($_POST['csrf_token']) || $_POST['csrf_token'] !== $_SESSION['csrf_token']) {
                 die("CSRF token validation failed");
             }
             ?>
             

3. Web Application Firewall (WAF): Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to detect and block malicious requests targeting the vulnerability. Configure the WAF with rules to identify and prevent CSRF attacks.
4. User Training: Educate administrators about the risks of CSRF attacks and the importance of avoiding suspicious links and websites.
5. Regular Security Audits: Conduct regular security audits of the PHPGurukul Student Record System to identify and address potential vulnerabilities.

References

• GitHub: CVE-2025-63955 Disclosure
• PHPGurukul Student Record System